800 migrants rescued from Mediterranean Sea

Over 800 migrants rescued from the Mediterranean Seaafter multiple agencies launched a joint operation on Saturday, local media reports said. The migrants were spotted sailing in overcrowded five boats, including two rubber dinghies.Seven children were also among the rescued and were taken by helicopter to the nearest hospital, located in Sfax, Tunisia. Two bodies were recovered too, according to officials. Migrants remain vulnerable to human traffickers who charge them thousands of euros to board often overcrowded, unseaworthy boats that set off from Libya and other countries for Europe.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), 3,116 migrants died or went missing in Mediterranean waters last year. The provisional count for 2018 is 206. In recent years, hundreds of thousands of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa have been rescued at sea. They seek to reach Europe to escape armed conflicts in their respective countries and earn a livelihood.